Search System, Search Method, and Program

1. A search apparatus comprising: hardware, including at least a processor; a search engine, implemented at least by the hardware, that implements a search in accordance with a search condition that is contained in a search request; a plurality of scoring engines, implemented at least by the hardware, that perform computation of scores of a plurality of items of information that results from a search; a search request processor, implemented at least by the hardware, that receives a search request from a user and causes said search engine to execute a search; a scoring engine weight value database, implemented at least by the hardware, that stores weight value information of each scoring engine that corresponds to a plurality of users or a plurality of search conditions; a search result response unit, implemented at least by the hardware, that causes weight value information stored in said scoring engine weight value database to be reflected in search results that are realized by a search by said search engine and that reflect scores computed by said scoring engines to create search results that are presented to a user; and a search result behavior acquisition unit, implemented at least by the hardware, that, when a user performs selection behavior with respect to search results that are presented, updates weight value information that is stored in said scoring engine weight value database in accordance with information based on said selection behavior, wherein said search result behavior acquisition unit includes weight value attenuation unit that, when a user performs selection behavior with respect to search results that are presented, attenuates weight value based on an elapsed time interval from the time an entry in a scoring weight value database was updated in accordance with immediately preceding selection behavior of said user until the current time.

2. The search apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein said search result behavior acquisition unit, when a user selects information from search results that contain score value information computed by a scoring engine, acquires score value information computed by each scoring engine for a user identifier of said user who made the selection and search results that were selected, searches from said scoring weight value database entries of said user identifier and of scoring engines, and when relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creates relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.

3. The search apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein said weight value attenuation unit attenuates weight value when a relevant entry exists in said scoring weight value database.

4. The search apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein said search result behavior acquisition unit, when a user selects information from search results that contain score value information computed by a scoring engine, acquires score value information that was computed by each scoring engine for a search condition that was used in the search and the search results that were selected, searches from said scoring weight value database entries of said search condition and scoring engines, and when relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creates said relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.

5. A search apparatus comprising: hardware, including at least a processor; a search engine, implemented at least by the hardware, that implements a search in accordance with a search condition that is contained in a search request; a plurality of scoring engines, implemented at least by the hardware, that perform computation of scores of a plurality of items of information that results from a search; a search request processor, implemented at least by the hardware, that receives a search request from a user and causes said search engine to execute a search; a scoring engine weight value database, implemented at least by the hardware, that stores weight value information of each scoring engine that corresponds to a plurality of users or a plurality of search conditions; a search result response unit, implemented at least by the hardware, that causes weight value information stored in said scoring engine weight value database to be reflected in search results that are realized by a search by said search engine and that reflect scores computed by said scoring engines to create search results that are presented to a user; a search result behavior acquisition unit, implemented at least by the hardware, that, when a user performs selection behavior with respect to search results that are presented, updates weight value information that is stored in said scoring engine weight value database in accordance with information based on said selection behavior; a search request unit that submits a request for a search to a search engine in accordance with a search request from a user; a scoring request unit that, when said search engine supplies search results, submits requests for scoring to a plurality of scoring engines; a scoring engine weight percentage calculation unit that, based on each item of scoring engine weight value information that corresponds to each user or each search condition that is stored in said scoring engine weight value database, calculates the weight percentage of each scoring engine; a score tabulator that tabulates scores computed by each scoring engine in accordance with the weight percentage of each scoring engine realized by said scoring engine weight percentage calculation unit; and a search result/score information output unit that rearranges search results according to scores tabulated by said score tabulator and supplies the search results.

6. The search apparatus according to claim 5 , further provided with: a search condition category database that stores correspondence information of search conditions and categories to which said search conditions belong; wherein: said scoring engine weight percentage calculation unit takes, as the scoring engine weight percentage that corresponds to search conditions, the ratio of the weight value of the search conditions with respect to the sum of the weight values indicated by weight value information relating to all conditions that belong to the same categories as the categories to which belong the search conditions contained in a search request from said search condition category database.

7. The search apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising an operation terminal that includes: a search request input unit that transmits a search request to a search request processor in accordance with a search condition applied as input by a user; and a search result presenting unit that receives search results from said search result/score information output unit and presents the search results to the user.

8. A search method of a search apparatus having a plurality of scoring engines comprising steps of: upon a processor of hardware of the search apparatus receiving a search request from a user, causing a search engine to execute a search in accordance with a search condition that is contained in the search request; causing, by the processor of the hardware, the plurality of scoring engines to compute scores of a plurality of items of information that result from a search; providing, by the processor of the hardware, a scoring engine weight value database that stores weight value information of each scoring engine that corresponds to a plurality of users or a plurality of search conditions; causing, by the processor of the hardware, weight value information that is stored in said scoring engine weight value database to be reflected in search results that are realized by a search by said search engine and that reflect scores computed by said scoring engines to create search results that are presented to users; acquiring, by the processor of the hardware, a user's selection behavior information with respect to search results that are presented; and causing the acquired selection behavior information to be reflected in said scoring engine weight value database; and when a user performs selection behavior with respect to search results that are presented, attenuating weight value based on the elapsed time from the time of updating entries in the scoring weight value database in accordance with immediately preceding selection behavior of the user until the current time.

9. The search method according to claim 8 , further comprising steps of: when a user selects information from search results containing score value information computed by scoring engines, acquiring score value information computed by each scoring engine for a user identifier of the user who made the selection and the search results that were selected; retrieving entries of said user identifier and the scoring engine from the scoring weight value database; and if relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creating relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.

10. The search method according to claim 9 , further comprising a step of, when a relevant entry exists in said scoring weight value database, attenuating weight value.

11. The search method according to claim 8 , further comprising steps of: when a user selects information from search results that contain score value information computed by scoring engines, acquiring score value information computed by each scoring engine for a search condition that was used in the search and the search results that were selected; retrieving entries of said search condition and scoring engines from the scoring weight value database; and when relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creating the relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.

12. A program product for causing a computer to execute processes of: implementing a search by search engines in accordance with a search condition that is contained in a search request; computing scores of a plurality of items of information that result from a search by a plurality of scoring engines; generating a scoring engine weight value database that stores weight value information of each scoring engine corresponding to a plurality of users or a plurality of search conditions; causing weight value information that is stored in said scoring engine weight value database to be reflected in search results that are searched by said search engines and that reflect scores computed by said scoring engines to create search results that are presented to a user; acquiring a user's selection behavior information with respect to search results that are presented and causing the acquired selection behavior information to be reflected in said scoring engine weight value database; and when a user performs selection behavior with respect to search results that are presented, attenuating weight value based on the elapsed time from the time of updating entries in the scoring weight value database according to immediately preceding selection behavior of the user until the current time.

13. The program product according to claim 12 , further causing said computer to execute processes of: when a user selects information from search results that contain score value information computed by a scoring engine, acquiring score value information computed by each scoring engine for a user identifier of the user who made the selection and the search results that were selected; retrieving entries of said user identifier and scoring engines from the scoring weight value database; and when relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creating the relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.

14. The program product according to claim 13 , further causing said computer to execute a process of attenuating weight value when relevant entries exist in said scoring weight value database.

15. The program product according to claim 12 , further causing said computer to execute processes of: when a user selects information from search results that contain score value information computed by scoring engines, acquiring score value information computed by each scoring engine for a search condition used in search and search results that were selected; retrieving entries of said search condition and scoring engines from the scoring weight value database; and when relevant entries do not exist in said scoring weight value database, creating relevant entries in said scoring weight value database.